31 Dec 2010

2010 kick started with my promotion to purple belt whereupon I continued competing and getting smashed but happily growing and enjoying myself. I've been lucky to be involved in a number of great interviews, reviews and media projects, the highlight of which was my Crazy-Ass Gi Design contest, which attracted hundreds of entries from all over the world and grabbed me a slot on the prestigous Fightworks Podcast radio show. I'd like to wish all my readers, friends, training partners and loved ones a very merry Xmas and prosperous New Year. Peace.

..damn, that was four sentences.

byMeerkatsu

in

December 31, 2010

29 Dec 2010

Hey good people! Did you get any nice and exciting BJJ related Xmas presents? I got a load of Amazon vouchers from my family because I really wanted them, and also I'm one of those people who is impossible to buy a present for.
Anyway, cheers to the lads at Scramble, who sent me their latest creation, Guard.

24 Dec 2010

byMeerkatsu

December 24, 2010

19 Dec 2010

Well with all this snow plus a load of other commitments, I've been done zippo training. But these wintry nights mean I get to play around with my doodles a lot more. Here's two more:

Grappling Panda!
This was done for some Chinese friends of mine who wanted to start up a Facebook Group for those UK-based BJJers who are of Chinese background. The actual FB group is linked here. If I had more time, I would have changed the background rays into a Union Jack, to emphasise that it was a UK group, but peeps seem to like it regardless.

(i) Quick lunchtime sketch

(ii) Better sketch

(iii) Final Render

Evil Teddy - Kumachan
Kumachan is a blog run by my buddy Gerry Hurtado. It's his nickname and he wanted a patch made so commissioned me to design a logo. Teddy's are all evil anyway, right?

December 19, 2010

17 Dec 2010

I believe it is summer down under, oh gee, what I'd give just for a smidgeon of warm sun right now. Oh well, at least I have this postcard from Irish BJJer, Stephen McKirgan, to keep me warm as he tells of his fun training in Sydney right now...

December 17, 2010

13 Dec 2010

Just completed a really fun assignment to design a brand new logo and mascot for F4 Martial Arts Academy over the pond in Arkansas, USA. The finished result is above, but I thought you might like to see the thought process that went through all our minds as the four instructors and I thrashed through, accepting and rejecting as the ideas evolved.

December 13, 2010

11 Dec 2010

Hey! Just heard, American grappling phenom Rafael Lovato Jr is heading to London for a couple of seminars (Jan 22/23) at EKBJJ academy. I'm so onto that one, it's gonna be awesome as Rafael is a hugely successful champion and also one of the relatively few BJJ celebs who likes to blog regularly. Oh and he endorses one of the most bling gis on the market - the Lucky Gi!

Speaking of gis, after the thrill of reviewing the Break Point gi, I received two rather extraordinary reactions, one on each side of the appreciation spectrum. The first is that Break Point Fight Company loved my review so much, they want to feature it as an advert or advertorial within Gracie Magazine! So little ole me will be centre spread, so to speak, inside THE Gracie Magazine in January - totally high five me!

Sadly, on the other side of the coin, my reviews seem to have attracted a level of criticism and sneering that I genuinely did not expect. Have a look here. Within the various positive and negative responses posted on that thread I write a fairly lengthy explanation as to why I write gi reviews which I think justifies what I do, not that I need to justify myself, but there you go. The poster is not a troll job, he's someone I know and respect and yet his rant came out of the blue. It's nice to know who your friends are!

Finally - for undecided Xmas present purchasers - there are still some cool pre-Xmas discounts to be had: Black Eagle are offering a massive 20% off all BJJ uniforms, valid until Dec 19th, check out their website here: http://www.black-eagle.co.uk/brazilianjiujitsu

You can also get 5% off Tatami Fightwear products using the code MEERKATSU5

And don't forget, for US readers, that MMAOutlet are offering 5% off everything using MEERKATSU code.

Cheers
:)

byMeerkatsu

in

December 11, 2010

9 Dec 2010

The new January 2011 issue of UK title "Martial Arts Illustrated" is out now. On the cover and six pages inside is my interview with BJJ black belt Gazzy Parman accompaying an amazing photo set by awesome photographer James Oluoch-Olunya (www.combat-bjj.com). I have to say it is one of the most intense interviews I have ever done and I feel privileged that Gazzy chose to share her story with little ole me.

But I made a mistake and I would like to take this opportunity to issue a formal correction and apology, here goes:

Gazzy Parman Interview - A Correction and Apology

In the January 2011 issue of Martial Arts Illustrated (out Dec 9th), I interviewed BJJ black belt Gazzy Parman and include an incorrect factual statement. In the article, I wrote 'Gazzy suffered a mental breakdown and had attempted suicide....' I formally wish to state that this is wholly incorrect.
During the many conversations Gazzy and I had as part of this interview, Gazzy talked about a period of her life where she was at a very low ebb and among the many things we discussed, she stated she was on "the verge of death". I misinterpreted her statements about this difficult time of her life and made my own, wrong, assumptions.

I would like to offer my unreserved apologies to Gazzy and to readers of Martial Arts Illustrated for this error. As a regular contributor to Martial Arts Illustrated I take great pride in the accuracy and integrity of my work and I regret this lapse in the usual high standards that Martial Arts Illustrated adheres to. I hope this does not detract readers from a feature article that charts Gazzy's amazing career as one of the great female fighters of the sport. I apologise once again for any harm my interpretation has caused to her reputation and wish Gazzy the best of luck with her future as a teacher, mentor and role model to so many aspiring young stars of the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu world.

8 Dec 2010

Summary
A super stylish, extrovert uniform - the Break Point Deluxe BJJ gi is more than just pimped up bling; it offers a well constructed, well fitting and comfortable prestige quality gi with a number of innovative features.

DISCLAIMER: I am not sponsored by any company nor to I endorse any brand. This review represents my honest, unbiased opinions. Thank you to www.made4fighters.com and www.breakpointfc.com for sending me this gi for review.

December 08, 2010

2 Dec 2010

Gasp! A postcard from somewhere sunny and nicer than frosty UK...my friend Benjamin in Singapore, let's see what he says about BJJ in his home country...

Hi Folks, I am Benjamin Liu from Singapore, I am 27 years old and I am a Blue Belt under Moura Jiujitsu. I was training in styles such as Taekwondo, Wing Chun, Jeet Kune Do and Escrima for six years before coming across grappling.

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About Me

My name is Seymour Yang and I am an artist and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fanatic. I write and draw content under the name Meerkatsu. You can buy my art prints, BJJ fightwear and clothing over at www.meerkatsu.com or click on the Store links on the navigation bar.